The All Island Canteen Owners Association charges that 80 percent of restaurants across the island have closed owing to the disruption in the distribution of gas.
President Asela Sampath speaking to NewsRadio said restaurants and hotels are facing a very unfortunate period.
He said home-based kitchens, that generate small incomes, are also severely affected owing to the shortage of gas.
He said businessmen cannot afford goods either owing to the rise in the cost of living with families and children also facing the brunt of government actions.
Sampath claimed that restaurant and hotel owners will set up firewood stoves opposite the Presidential Secretariat and prepare meals and demanded that the government address the gas shortage immediately.
